EXCLUSIVE: Hollywood abounds with filmmaking brother acts – the Russo Brothers, Duffer Brothers, Coen Brothers, Hughes Brothers, the Farrelly Brothers, and going way back Warner Bros. and the Lumière Brothers. Of noted filmmaking sister acts, there have been far fewer. But the Foscht Sisters — twins Bianca and Dilara — are changing that.

The 25-year-old siblings from Graz, Austria, who are now based in Los Angeles, were recently invited to join the European Film Academy, recognition of a burgeoning career that saw them break out with their feature directorial debut, Day of a Lion. They also star in that eerie psychological drama, playing “two women drawn into a game of cat and mouse in the house of a dead man.”

Next month, the Foschts head to the prestigious Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland with their latest project, co-starring roles in Manhunt from award-winning Canadian director Wayne Wapeemukwa. The film, premiering in Competition, is inspired by a true story from 2019 about two teenage boys from Vancouver Island who “murdered three strangers and fled north through ghost towns and endless forest,” according to a synopsis. “Manhunt reframes those events not as true crime, but as a parable of modern masculinity — a generation raised by computers, haunted by loneliness, and searching for meaning in the ruins of the frontier.”

Bianca describes Manhunt as “a true love letter to independent filmmaking because it was a road trip movie in itself. And we went all over the place from Vancouver all the way up north in Canada… It was a very small crew and cast and everybody was in it for the passion of the story because it’s a very important one too.”

Adds Dilara, “One of the requirements for casting, they were saying, ‘Are you comfortable with camping and are you comfortable with being out in the wild?’ And we were like, ‘Yes, absolutely. We are all in for it.’ And we’ve done so many short movies in the previous years and small indie projects, we’re like, ‘Nothing can shock us anymore.’”

Meanwhile, the Foscht Sisters are plotting their sophomore writing-directing effort, Oma, “a female-driven psychological horror film with a surrealistic perspective.”

“The plan is that we are directing it and also playing two roles in it,” says Dilara. “However, this is an ensemble cast. So, this is not like Day of a Lion where it’s three characters and that’s it. There’s multiple characters in this one. And we’re still looking actually for the leading role in it, Oma, the title character.”

They’re assembling the financing for the project, which will impact where they shoot the film.

“The storyline plays in the Austrian Alps, but the characters are very ambiguous. So they could be from the UK, from France, from the U.S.,” notes Bianca. “We have the option to shoot in Slovakia… as well as options in Italy. And as shooting in Europe often involves a couple different countries, that might be an option. We try to keep it as contained as possible though because it is an independent movie.”

The twins are repped in Canada by MoGood Talent Agency. They have separate managers in the U.S. – Dilara repped by The Green Room, and Bianca by Skyfire Artists. They recently launched Foscht Twins Entertainment LLC, a production company that will serve as a home for their acting and filmmaking work “while supporting bold stories and international voices.”

“We are interested in stories that take risks,” the Foscht Twins said in a release. “Day of a Lion was our first feature, but it was never meant to be a calling card. It was the beginning of a larger body of work, and we are excited to keep building that work through film, stage, and international collaboration.”

The identical twins were born 12 minutes apart – Bianca being the “elder” sibling. The sisterly bond resonates with many Hollywood insiders who point to parallels in the industry.

“Often, we are talking with people and it’s, ‘Oh yeah, like the Duplass Brothers.’ And we’re like, ‘Yes, like them!’ or, the Safdie Brothers, ‘Yes, like them! but just the female version of this,’” Dilara shares. “On one side it’s very encouraging because I think Hollywood really does love those duos because it’s two brains working on the same mission in a way, which I think very much Bianca and I relate to.”

Their brainchild Day of a Lion was recently picked up for international distribution by DCP+, the distribution platform founded by Roman Coppola, Leo Matchett, and Michael Musante (Sofia Coppola serves on the board). DCP+ and Copenhagen-based sales agency LevelK intend to bring the film to audiences worldwide, excluding North America, through premium VOD services. U.S. and Canada rights, as Deadline reported, were acquired last year by Gravitas Ventures.

That’s not the only news involving Day of a Lion. The drama, which takes place in a single location, is also being adapted for the stage by award-winning playwright Ryan M. Luévano. The twins tell Deadline the project is set to begin pitching in New York and the United Kingdom.

Bianca and Dilara have appeared on screen separately – Bianca in Eternity (A24), with Miles Teller and Elizabeth Olsen, and Dilara in Comedia del’ Adri, from Gran Manzana Films. They plan to pursue solo projects on occasion, while developing joint projects through Foscht Twins Entertainment LLC.

“We have different, how do you say…?“ Dilara ponders. Bianca helps supply the word: “Essences.” “Essences and sensibilities, exactly,” Dilara affirms. “And interests. Even the movies that we watch is really interesting. Bianca, if there’s a psychological thriller or some dark, weird-ass movie coming out, Bianca’s the first one to watch it. While I just love period pieces. Something like more the Emerald Fennell direction, which might be also weird, but a little more, I don’t want to call it feminine side or female side, but more coming of age, a little bit more on that side. Romantic, maybe, if you want to call it that way.”

In Day of a Lion they play very different characters – twisted sisters, you might say. “This was such an interesting contrast,” Dilara says of that film. “And I think it is because it comes from two sensibilities merging.”

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